


The Path Is Yours To Chose.

by Sanata101



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-08-02
Packaged: 2020-07-28 18:30:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20068606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sanata101/pseuds/Sanata101
Summary: Polka was a princess of Nohr, but now knowing that she had to make a choice between the family she grew with and the people that are her birth family from Hoshido, it caused her to feel so much heartbreak and pain more than others would even knew.So she decided to make her own choice.She was going to make her own path.Her future was not to be defined by their words. If they wanted a war they could have it. They could have all of the territory, their weapons, their kingdoms, and their lies.They could have anything now.But not her.(I got inspired to do this after reading something on here so I decided that maybe I can do my very own sequel to it with my oc's name in here besides the word "Kamui". So um...I hope you all will like this.)





	1. This path I chose...

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Another Choice](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4208265) by [IAmTheUltimateGleek](https://archiveofourown.org/users/IAmTheUltimateGleek/pseuds/IAmTheUltimateGleek). 

Polka kept running deeply into the forest, not caring if she kept running out of breath. Or by the fact that her feet were starting to hurt, all she wanted to do was to run from it all. 

Everything was a blur as she ran. She ran away from her family and her blood family, away from the people that she wanted to try and become family with. 

She didn't want any of this anymore, she hated by the fact that her own adopted family _lied to her from the start when she was just a child._

It still hurts just thinking about it again. 

Suddenly, she tripped over a root and hits the ground, causing her shout in surprise and hit the ground. She felt herself shaking violently, she quickly got up and didn't think twice about running again to who-gods-know-where. 

Soon when she didn't hear the sounds of anyone nearby, she finally came to a stop once she got to a clearing and fell to the ground on her hands and knees, panting heavily she desperately gasps in for breath, sweet dripping down from her head. Her long braids going down as well. Her head was pounding from the adrenaline. 

After what felt like hours she slowly moves her head up and was met with the sight of a lake sparkling from the sunlight which was setting. She slowly goes over and looks down at her reflection and saw that she had tears falling down her face, and yet she wasn't making any sound at all. 

Taking in a deep breath the girl places both hands in the water and washes her face, wanting to snap out of her daze of shock and fear. The cold water felt nice on her slightly white tan-ish skin as she splashes it on her face. Soon thinking it was enough she felt her heart slowly beating back to its normal pace, taking in the sight of her reflection she wipes away her tears and continuously stares blankly at the water and lets out a gentle sigh and looks up at the sky once more. 

"...Why did this have to happen...?" She whispers softly as she hugs herself tightly, shutting her eyes she felt tears slide down her face, sniffling as she remembers the voices of her family calling out to her as she ran away from all the fighting, of all the lies and the blood shed that could have been spilled because of the side she could have made. 

"...I'm sorry mother...I'm so sorry father... I.... I can't take this pain anymore... I didn't want this to happen.... I just... I just want it all to stop now...." She whispers softly, tears falling down her face as she soon starts crying again and brings her knees close to her chest as she cries. 

"Why do I have to choice between them...why...? Why can't we just be in peace...? This.... This isn't fair..." She whispers, digging in her nails into her arms as she cries. "I-In t-the e-end I-I j-just s-screwed u-up.... I-I r-ran a-away b-because I-I d-didn't w-want t-to p-pick b-between t-them... I-I d-don't w-wanna b-betray t-them a-all.... I-I'm s-sorry I-I f-failed y-you a-and e-everyone e-else... I-I'm a m-mistake... I-I s-shouldn't b-be h-here a-anymore... B-But... I-I c-couldn't k-kill m-myself... I-I _can't _do it..." 

She sobs, her shoulders were shaking violently. She was so busy crying that she didn't even noticed someone was quietly watching and was starting to silently go towards her. 

"Polka...." 

The instant she heard her name being said she instantly shot up and scooted away as far as she could. With an appearance that resembled one of a caged animal, horror and fear was showing in her eyes. 

She was looking into Azura's eyes, who were filled with concern and worry, she was keeping her distance so she didn't make Polka feel like she was being threatened to be captured. 

Polka whimpers in fear, tears now falling from her eyes as she sobs. "P-Please...tell me your not going to bring me to them....p-please...." She whispers softly, eyes filled with fear and was begging that the songstress wasn't going to call the others or anyone else. 

Polka's shoulder's slightly relaxed once she saw Azura shaking her head no and soon saw her kneel down to her height and got down on both knees. "I won't tell anyone your here...I'm here because I want to make sure that...you aren't hurt after all that running...." She said in a gentle voice, her pale blue ocean eyes relaxing and a small smile appeared on her face. Slowly Polka uncurls herself from her small little ball that made her helplessly try to protect herself and goes closer slightly to Azura and she felt the Songstress place a hand over hers and saw her softly smile at her. 

"That's it...you have nothing to be scared of..." Azura said gently, making Polka sniffle and look down and start to cry again. "I...I don't know what to do Azura...I don't want to fight either of my siblings...I don't want to be in this war...I-I don't wanna be apart of this war either... if that means I have to fight my family... My siblings of Nohr lied to me, they _lied _and they _knew _that I was kidnapped and was brought to their home... A-And my siblings.... I-I d-don't kn-know i-if I-I c-could g-go b-back t-there... I-I c-caused m-mother's d-death, a-and... I-I... I..." Polka gently felt arms wrap around her and instantly cries into Azura's shoulders and hugs her back, her hold however was weak and her arms were shaking in fear at the touch of contact. 

She felt Azura gently pet her head. Trying to help her calm down her crying. "Polka, none of that was your fault...Mikoto foresaw her own death, just like Yukimora told us. And I know that it must be hard to face the truth that your siblings in Nohr know that Sumiragi was killed by their father." She whispers and pulls away and gently wipes away Polka's tears gently. "But none of that was your fault... I can tell your scared of them, Polka." She said softly as Polka sniffles, looking into her eyes, they were red and blood shot from crying so much. 

"S-So...you know t-that I-I d-don't w-want t-to g-go n-near t-them...?" She asks, and she hears Azura let out a soft quiet sigh. "I do...but no matter how scary it must be, you have to be strong, no matter the cost..." The songstress said, making the chocolate haired brunette look down with a guilty and sad expression and hears Azura stand up and reach down her hand for her, causing Polka to blink in confusion and looks up at Azura who softly smiles at her. 

"Which is why I'm going to help you on this path you made, and help you bring peace to this war if you so wish it." She said, making Polka blink in surprise and shock at the words the songstress said to her. "After all, the Yato chose you for a reason." She reminded her, making Polka blink and look down at the sword. She had forgotten all about the yato that was beside her. She could have just used it to kill herself right here and now so that way it could choice someone else as its holder, but then looks up at Azura and stares down at her hand again. "...do you...really think I can end this war if I come with you?" She asks and she sees Azura nod her head with a soft gentle smile on her face. "Of course...besides, I already know who is behind all the incidence that is making Hoshido and Nohr fighting each other." She explained. 

"That's why, there is someplace that I want to bring you to before I can explain more about the threat that's causing all of this to happen." She finishes, making Polka stare at her silently and sees the Songstress smile softly with a gentle warm look in her eyes. "So, will you please come with me?" She asks. 

Polka thinks for a moment, she silently stares at Azura for a long while before she nods, taking her hand in hers and feels Azura pull her to her feet and sees her softly smile at her. "I promise that we'll end this war together, and no matter what, we'll be sure to bring your siblings together as well."

Polka smiles softly at the words being said and nods at Azura. 

"So, where do we need to go?" She asks and feels Azura bring her along and felt her keep a nice grip on her hand as they both walk hand in hand. "We'll be heading over to the bottomless canyon. The both of us will have to jump down once Hoshido and Nohr's skies change color." Polka nods her head in understanding and smiles softly at Azura as they both head down the path that will lead them both to the bottomless canyon. 

She only hopes that the choice she made won't be one that she'll regret on.


	2. Chapter 2

Three days had past. Azura and Polka kept walking for what felt like an eternity, knowing full well that now they were heading a slight bit closer to their destination. Once they made it to the bottomless canyon Polka and Azura would have a lot of talking to do. 

Polka lets out a soft sigh and suddenly realized that there was a village nearby and blinks. "Hey Azura, look! There's a village. Maybe we can go and stay over there for the night?" She asks and sees Azura nod her head with a small smile. "That's a good idea, we might as well need to find a place to stay, including we need to find some items we may need before we go and continue the next day." She said. And the both of them head over to the village, once they do Polka's eyes were sparkling as she saw so many villagers helping one another, even though it was small, it appeared to be lively, it was also full of life as well. There were red sakura trees along with many flowers were growing. 

"Wow...I never seen such a lively small village like this before.." She whispers, this place wasn't like anything from Nohr or Hoshido. Hoshido was truly a beautiful place with kind people and many other things such as that, but this village was perfect as well. Azura couldn't help but smile at the curiosity in Polka's eyes, they looked like that just as she and the others went around and explored the entire city. 

"I'll go and find us a place to stay, you can go and look around." Azura said to Polka who turned around and looked at her with worry. "Will you be okay Azura?" She asks and sees the Songstress nod her had with a gentle smile. "Of course, I'll be sure to find you as soon as I can." She said and soon left the brunette on her own. Polka sighs softly and decided to look around. As she does she blinks when she saw a child that appeared to be poor and hungry, he was wearing rags and appears to be sad. Looking at the boy with sadness she goes towards him and kneels down and brings out a loaf of bread and hands it to the boy who blinks in surprise and looks up at her.

"Y-Your giving me this miss?" He asks, and the kind princess nods her head with a gentle smile. The child smiles happily and hugs her and laughs happily. "Thank you so much miss!" He said, and pulled away and waved goodbye to her, making the young girl smile softly and giggles. 

"Wow, that was very sweet of you to do something like that!" 

Surprised by the voice who spoke to her the brunette quickly turns around and her ruby eyes meet with crystal white ones. It was a girl that appeared to be about her age, her hair was up in a high side ponytail and she had a pink lily hair pin on the side of her head. She wore a white dress that goes down to her knees but she also wore blue paints as well as some high heeled boots. Her hair color was unique, it was light and dark blue but it was in a line pattern. She appeared to be at least about Polka's age. 

Instantly noticing that the villager surprised the princess she giggles, placing a hand over her mouth. "Sorry! I didn't mean to startle ya! I just noticed you and I couldn't help but thought that what you did was really nice." The Blunette said, making Polka bashfully rub the back of her neck and smile a tiny bit at her. "I-It was nothing really...and thank you...um...?" She tilts her head and sees the girl giggle. 

"My name's Sanata! Sanata Dusk, its nice to meet you. I'm guessing your the princess right?" She asks, which made Polka freeze and stare at her in shock but then sees Sanata smile softly and place her hand up to stop her from speaking before her.

"Hey don't worry, I won't say anything about you, nor won't I tell a single guard in this village about you either." She said with a giggle and looks around. "Besides, this place isn't really that close to either Nohr or Hoshido, so you should be alright." She said, making Polka blink in surprise and tilts her head in confusion. "W-Wait a second, why are you telling me all of this?" She asks and sees the girl gently smile at her.

"Well, its going to be hard to believe but... Well, you and I kind of met before... You snuck out of the castle of Nohr and ended up getting so lost that you came all the way here. Me and my twin sister Sanora found you crying and all alone. The both of us took care of you before the guards of Nohr found you here after a guard from this village quickly send a message about you being here. While we waited the three of us played for a while until you had to go, you probably don't remember since you were actually really little at that time, along with you being isolated from the world and all." She said with a small smile as Polka was staring at the girl in complete and utter shock and surprise at what Sanata said to her and suddenly memories came flying back to her head instantly and she smiles happily.

"Now I remember! Wow..I didn't think I would have the courage to leave the palace at all..." She said softly, making Sanata giggle. "Well, you said that you were tired of being isolated in the castle and you wanted to explore, not only that you do seem slightly different. The first time we meet you were kind of shy, but after when you opened up to me and Sanora you became slightly stubborn and never stopped trying to fit in with all the other kids here...at first though a lot of other kids didn't find you very kind, since you lived in Nohr and all..." She said, making Polka slowly nod her head in understanding and places a hand on her arm and squeezes it tightly and lets out a soft sigh, knowing that Sanata did prove a very important fact. She didn't knew what was going outside the walls of the castle at first until she had turned eight years old. 

She was so confused with why the other kids treated her so badly but when she turned eight she couldn't stop crying in her room since she knew that her own brothers had killed some of their relatives there. She never said a word about them to the others since she knew that if she did Garon wouldn't hesitate into killing every single one of those children, along with the people in this village. 

"Word spread quickly that you had ran away from both kingdoms, a lot of people are dead set on trying to find you, ya know." Sanata said, snapping the princess out of her thoughts and looks at her and sighs. "I figured...me and a friend of mine are going to try and stop this war for good." She said, making Sanata look at her in surprise. "Wait, for real? On your own?" She asks, and instantly Polka nods her head. "Yes. It probably won't be easy, and I...I may be scared of the fact that I may have to face my siblings again at one point, but I need to end this war and bring peace to both kingdoms..." She said, looking down and she hugs herself tightly. 

"When I first found out that I was actually the princess of Hoshido, I was shocked... I was also angry and scared that my own siblings from Nohr, who taught me, trained me, and raised me as their own, lied to me... they lied to me, and knew that my own step father killed my true father... I... I just couldn't take it, and at that point I was so scared of them fighting that I just... ran away from them... I never wanted to look at any of them in the eye because I... I thought that if I did... I would do something that probably would be the biggest mistake of my life... along with the fact that... I killed my own mother... I don't think anyone in Hoshido or Nohr would want someone like me around anymore... I... I could possibly just be branded as a traitor to some of the people there..." Tears fell down from Polka's eyes and she quietly sobs and hugs herself tightly again and her body shakes once again. 

"I...I don't want that...I don't want to be hated by both families....if I could, I would just stop this war...I don't want to be some kind of piece in this... this "game" that's happening..." She whispers quietly, she was honestly surprised at how...hateful her words sounded. "I don't want to be some kind of pawn in this war... they're fighting over me, and they probably still are..." She said softly and lets out a shaky sigh and wipes away her tears. "If my friend didn't find me sooner I....I probably would have stabbed myself with the yato that chose me right here..." She said softly, looking at the Yato as Sanata stared at the princess in shock. 

Soon, Polka felt the girl place a gentle hand on her shoulder and saw her smiling down at her gently. "Don't worry, I'm sure that everything will settle as long as you stop the war...but I think you and your friend are going to need all the help you can get." Polka blinks in surprise as she saw Sanata's left eye turn a bloody red color and saw her raise her hand up. Her eyes widen more as she saw fire suddenly appear in the girls hand, but it wasn't even hurting her at all. 

"Which is why, I wanna come with you." Sanata said, making Polka's eyes go wide in shock. "Y-You w-want to come with us?" She asks, and she sees Sanata giggle and nod her head. "Yup! You see, me and my sister weren't born in a normal family. My mother was a very powerful person while my father was a business mercenary before the war. I have the ability to use fire magic while my sister can use magic along with being very skilled using a axe and hammer mallet. We can also create ourselves wings so we can fly. We'll be able to help you in every way we can! I promise!" She said happily, her eyes sparkling as Polka was looking at her in complete surprised at the unexpected request. 

"A-Are you sure? We'll probably be up against a lot of enemies...and we'll probably be gone for a very long time as well." She said and sees Sanata giggle. "Its alright, besides, Sanora and I lost our mother and father a very long time ago, so its fine. After all, the both of us were thinking about exploring the world anyways." She said, making Polka smile a tiny bit and nods her head in understanding. "Alright, well then Sanata. I'll go and tell my friend about you and your sister so we can-"

"I don't think there's any need in doing that Polka." 

Polka's eyes widen in surprise and she quickly turns her head around and saw the smiling face of Azura who was standing beside a girl with purple and gray stripped color hair that is up in high pigtails. She was wearing a black trench coat with a purple tank top. She had two weapons being held on her back which were purple painted malice hammer and axe. She wore brown paints with high heeled black leather boots. Her eyes were a purple dusk color and her skin was white, just like Sanata's. She was slightly taller than her as well, at least the same height as Marx and Ryoma. 

"Me and Azura heard everything. I didn't think I would be able to see you again under these circumstances huh?" The girl said with a chuckle while Polka looked at her in confusion until it hit her as she then recognized who it was and saw Sanata say something before she could. 

"Sanora?! Jeez I didn't think you had heard very much at all." She said, making the girl chuckle. "Well it just so happens that this girl here came by asking if she and Polka here could find a place to stay for the night, obviously since Polka's here I'm alright with having her staying with us until then. Plus we got a lot of things and food that we can pack up at home, so we should be fine." Polka smiles happily and kindly bows. "Thank you so much!" 

Sanora chuckles and shakes her head, placing a hand on her shoulder, causing Polka to look up at her and sees that she was smiling. "Hey, no need to be so formal remember? You got nothing to worry about." Sanora said with a gentle smile on her face. 

"Alright!! I can't wait for this! I get to actually hang out with Polka again!" Sanata said happily as she jumps up and down with excitement. Seeing this made Polka blink in surprise as she looks at them both and she couldn't help but smile as a realization came into her mind. 

'Those two remind me so much of Elise and Marx...' 

* * *

After a day went by, the girls managed to get ready to go and head to the bottomless canyon. 

Polka was outside, she was already done preparing herself for heading out along with Azura, she soon hears the door open and saw the two come out with happy smiles. She then noticed Sanata was wearing an orange scarf around her neck. Sanora beside her carrying a message bag. Seeing that they were all prepared they both left the village and started to continue on and head over to the bottomless canyon. 

"Hey Azura, what are we going to do once we reach the bottomless canyon anyways? You never did told me." Polka said to Azura who looks at Polka and gave her a serious expression. "You'll see once we get there." She said, making Polka sigh softly and nod her head. 

She figured that Azura would say something like that, but she at least had to try. 

Soon the four of them made it to the canyon. Sanata looked down and whistles. "Jeez, no wonder people call it the bottomless canyon. I can't see from the bottom at all...." She mumbles as she looks down as Sanora looks at Azura. "So, what do we do now?" She asks and Azura goes towards the bridge. 

"Simple. We jump into the canyon." She states, instantly shocking the three girls. "Now wait just a minute! Your saying that jumping into the canyon will help us stop this war?!" Sanata exclaims in shock while Sanora gains a serious expression. "Indeed, no one will find us but if we jump into the canyon we both die. What is that suppose to accomplish?" Sanora asks as she raises a brow. 

"Don't worry, you won't die if you jump off the canyon. Just trust me, okay?" Azura said, then looks back as Polka looks at her seriously. "Azura, if we jump down into the canyon, you'll tell us everything we need to know in order for us to win this war, right?" She asks. When she did she sees Azura nod her head. "Yes, if that is what you wish." 

Polka stays quiet for a moment before letting out a soft sigh. "I guess we have no choice." 

"Are you sure about this Polka?! I-I mean..." Polka looks back at Sanata who looked really nervous and gives her a small reassuring smile. "Sanata relax, I think I've known Azura long enough to trust completely. If she's saying that she'll tell us more if we jump, then we'll go ahead and do it." 

Azura gently smiles at the kind words that Polka was saying and turns around. "Thank you Polka, I'll go ahead and jump first and wait for you to follow." She said and goes towards the bridge. 

Polka nods her head and goes towards the bridge while Sanora and Sanata stay behind and wait for a moment before looking back at each other. They both nod their heads and soon go over and head down into the canyon just after Azura and Polka jumped off the bridge and went into the canyon. 

* * *

Slowly, Polka came to after she had jumped off the canyon and slowly opens her eyes and looks around. 

She was shocked to find that she was on the ground, and there were islands floating up in mid air and a ton of things were floating as well. She blinks in shock and surprise as she looks around and gets up from the ground and looks around the area.

"Ugh...is this...the bottom of the canyon...?" She asks herself and looks at herself and her eyes grew slightly wide in surprise. "Wow....that was one heck of a jump, but none of my bones seem to be broken at all." She heard Sanata say and turns her head quickly and saw her and Sanora checking their selves and they also had surprised expressions on their faces. Polka looks up at Azura and saw her sigh in relief and smile at the three of them. "Thank goodness. I told you'd be alright, didn't I?" She asks, making Polka let out a giggle for the first time since forever and nods her head.

"Indeed you did Azura." The brunette said with a kind smile. "So... Where are we?" Sanora asks, looking around with narrowed eyes. "This place looks like it's seen better days." Polka nods in agreement and looks at Azura who was silent for a short second before speaking. "This is the kingdom of Valla. Its responsible for the war that's happening between Hoshido and Nohr." Instantly Polka looked at Azura in confusion while Sanata and Sanora looked back at her with their own confused expressions as well. 

"This place is responsible? How?" Sanata asks, tilting her head curiously. 

Azura stays silent again and looks around before gesturing the three. "Come, each of you. If we linger out here we'll be spotted." She said and soon leaves and heads off. Polka looks back at the two, both of them also mirroring her confused expression before following Azura into a cave that appeared to be dark. But luckily Sanata was kind enough to create a light for them. 

"We should be safe here..." Azura said, looking around before turning back to the girls.

"As I was saying, the kingdom of Valla is occupied by King Anankos. Before his arrival, this land was a peaceful one. All was well until Anankos killed our king and took the throne for himself. Once bountiful farmlands were devastated. Replaced by wastelands and graveyards." Polka, Sanata, and Sanora stared at Azura in complete and utter shock. 

"He destroyed an entire kingdom?! For no reason at all?!" Sanata asks in complete shock. Azura nodded her head, a serious expression on her face. "Yes. And he isn't finished." She stated, causing Sanata and Sanora to look at each other in concern while Polka looks at the songstress with a concerned expression as Azura starts to continue. "He wishes to lay waste to the entire world. First Valla, then Nohr and Hoshido. Even now, he's the hidden influence that quietly forces Nohr and Hoshido to fight. King Garon's invasion is the result of Anankos's subtle manipulations." 

Polka's eyes go wide in utter shock as she hears what Azura was telling her and the other two. Garon, her own step father, was being manipulated by someone?

If her step sibblings found out about this, they would probably be likely to deny this fact...but how can she know that?

"That's horrible..." The brunette said softly and looks down with a sad expression on her face. "But...if it's true, then maybe we can stop this war by defeating Anankos, right?" Sanata asks, making Sanora nod in agreement. "Of course, its the most obvious choice we have to make." Sanora said, causing Sanata to nod with a smile along with Polka. "Then we need to go head back up and tell everyone about this right away!" Polka said but before the other two could go Azura stopped them as she spoke. 

"I'm sorry, but you can't." 

Instantly Sanata, Sanora, and Polka look back at Azura in shock and surprise. "Huh? B-But why?" Sanata asks, looking at Azura just as confused as Sanora and Polka. "Because you mustn't talk about Valla when your beyond its borders. If you do, you'll cause a curse that will cause your body to dissolve and disappear." Azura said, looking down with a sad expression on her face. 

"That's what happened to my mother.... To Arete, the former queen of Valla." She said, making Sanora blink in shock at what she said. "Wait, your mother? She's the queen of this land?" She asks, looking at her in surprise. 

Sanata immediately felt the pieces click and she looked at Azura in shock. "So if Arete was the queen of Valla, doesn't that mean Azura is..." The dark and light blunette trails off as Azura nods her head.

"Yes...I am a Vallite princess. And the king that Anankos murdered... He was my father." 

Polka's eyes go wide in shock. "No...so that means you were forced to flee?" She asks, and sees Azura nod her head again. 

"Yes... but I wasn't able to tell anyone about this before. Because of that curse... Even if I wanted to talk, I couldn't." Azura gazed down at the ground as she says this, placing a hand over the pendant she was wearing. "I was trapped-no matter how much I missed my parents. I had to keep it all bottled up inside..." She pauses and looks up at the three girls. "That is, until now." She finishes. 

"Azura..." Polka said the girl's name softly, looking at her she saw a small smile appear on her face. "Listen, Polka. I'm sorry to say this, but... Now that you have chosen and created this path. You'll know exactly what I've been feeling. No matter how much you want someone to understand what's happening... No matter how much you want to tell them the truth... You won't be able to tell them. You need to prepare yourself for that." She said, then looks at Sanora and Sanata. "And that goes for the two of you as well.." She said, and looks back at Polka again. "I can't even express how painful it is to know the truth and not be able to say it." 

Polka and the other two stay silent, after a moment Polka lets out a soft sigh and nods her head.

"Alright. I understand." 

Suddenly, something was heard from the other side of the cave, causing the four girls to stop and look towards up the west path. "Uh, what was that?!" Sanata asks and sees Azura quickly move up towards the wall and look straight up ahead. "There are enemies approaching- a rather large number of enemies." Azura looks back at Polka with a serious expression. "Polka, we'll have to deal with this threat before we can continue." 

Polka goes silent before nodding her head.

"Understood!"

Instantly, the girls brought out their weapons. Sanata was able enough to create her own sword, it was a light blue sword with red fiery gems on the handles. Sanora brought out her hammer mallet while Polka brings out her Yato. Azura as well brought out her weapon, which was a brass spear. 

"Tread carefully you three, our enemies may use the shadows to ambush us." 

Nodding their heads, the girls soon began to start to attack. So far, the girls were actually doing well in taking down the enemies, though Sanata's sword was somewhat of a pain since it sort of gives away their positions, but it also helps them with being able to see through the dark. 

They were getting a bit closer to their goal, but once they did. Polka stops once she saw a familiar knight, making her eyes go wide in complete shock. 

"No...t-there's no way, could that knight actually be...?" Instantly as if answering her question, Sanata made her flame become a bit more brighter to reveal Gunter. 

"Lady Polka!" 

Polka's face turned into a huge smile and quickly she rushes over towards the knight. "Gunter! Is it really you?! You're really alive?!" She asks and sees Gunter nod his head. "I am. I lost consciousness as I fell, and when I awoke, I was here. I have no idea how I survived such a fall..." He sighs but then smiles and pets Polka's head, making her smile happily. "But I swear on my blade that I am no ghost. My arms and legs are as sturdy as ever." 

Polka giggles and soon felt the knight move his hand away from her head and smiles. "Its great to see you again unharmed Gunter. I'm so glad we found you." Gunter nods his head but soon looks back at the area nearby. "I would love nothing more than to celebrate m'lady, but it appears we don't have time right now..." Knowing that he was right Polka nodded her head at him. "These foes are truly challenging, I'll help you fend them off!" 

Polka smiles and soon they both go and start battling the Vallite soldiers. 

* * *

After they managed to size the area, Polka soon looks at Gunter with a happy smile. "Gunter, it's so good to see you safe and sound!" Gunter nodded his head and smiles gently at Polka. "I'm glad to see you as well, Lady Polka... After I fell, I truly thought I was never going to see your face again." He said, then notices the Yato Polka was carrying in her hand.

"It seems you've grown a lot stronger while we've been apart as well." 

Polka nods her head with a small smile. "Yeah, a lot of things sort of...happened while you were away." She said, rubbing the back of her neck. 

"Really? What happened? And more importantly, why are you here?" He asks. When he did, Azura come up to him and stand beside Polka. 

"I brought them." Was all she said, making Gunter look at her suspiciously. "And who are you?" He asked her. And of course, Azura answered him.

"My name is Azura. If I said I was the kidnapped princess of Nohr as a child...would you understand?" A surprised expression appeared on Gunter's face. "Ah! Yes, I remember when you were little. *Gunter places a hand on his chest and bows at her. "I apologize for my failure to protect you from your Hoshidan kidnappers." Azura just smiles at the knight and shakes her head. "There is no need to apologize, really... It doesn't matter at the moment. I'd rather learned how you survived out here." She said, Sanora nodded her head in agreement.

"Indeed. You must have been quite the knight to have avoid meeting such a fate." As the purple haired girl said this Sanata nodded in agreement along with Polka. 

"You seem familiar with this place Lady Azura. Where are we, exactly?" He asks. 

"This is Valla, an invisible kingdom tied to the world by the bottomless canyon. It is ruled by Anankos, who wishes to destroy the world. So long as he remains on the Vallite throne, the world will not know peace." She explained. 

"Indeed, and if you say a word about this place, a curse will trigger and will dissolve you into disappearing." Sanora added, crossing her arms. Instantly a baffled expression appeared on Gunter's face at the information of this place. "What?! Is that possible?!" He asks. 

"It seems so." Polka responded, looking down as she crosses her arms. "Also...I...um..." Polka bites her lower lip and looks away. "I've...ran away from both Hoshido and Nohr....I just couldn't pick between a side...they are probably still looking for me back up there as well, *she said and then looks back up at Gunter with her brows furrowed together* Whenever we meet next, we may have to fight...*she sighs, looking down with a sad expression.* and...I really don't like the fact that I have to fight them at all.." She mumbles softly, trying her best not to cry.

Honestly, Gunter wasn't even surprised.

He knew Polka for a very long time. She was completely isolated from the world and was tortured for every little mistake she did. Because of this she was always afraid of making mistakes and wants to avoid trying to do anything that would make anyone she knew hurt her. 

Of course he told her that no matter what none of her siblings would do something like that to her, but of course he knew that they probably would if she abandoned Nohr, and it was likely that she avoid trying to do the same with her blood family, even though she never had been with them for long. 

"Lady Polka, I know that you are afraid, and you must be really shocked after finding out about your birth family... but I know that you have to be strong enough to stand back to your feet..." Polka looks up, her eyes staring at Gunter's who stares at her with his serious gaze. "But if you will need any help with moving forward on this path you took, then I will stand by you." He said, making Polka gently smile at him.

"Thank you Gunter." 

Sanata smiles happily and giggles. "Awesome! Now we have another member of the team! This is great!" She said happily, a bright smile on her face. Sanora softly smiles at her twin sister's excitement but then looks back at Gunter. 

"Oh, that's right. We never did asked how you even fell down here in the first place." Sanora said in realization, making Sanata stop cheering and look at her sister before nodding in agreement. 

"Well...that's sort of a long story..." Polka said, looking to the side.

"You see, I was sent out on a mission, Gunter was with me, along with my other retainer named Jacob. We were trying to take over an area that was on the other side of the canyon until we found out there were actually Hoshidans taking over that area. I figured that King Garon placed that as a trapped for me and the other two...*she sighs softly and looks down* after we managed to get that spot, we thought we got rid of all the Hoshidans that were there, but reinforcement showed up. Right when we thought that we were going to get attacked again, my step siblings, Marx, Leon, Camilla, and Elise came in and saved us all just in time. Me and Gunter quickly left just as Marx told us to but then, Hans, who served lord Garon, attacked Gunter, which made him fell down the bottomless canyon. Where I actually thought he had died..." 

Sanata and Sanora looked at Polka in shock then look back at Gunter in awe. "Wow... the gods must have smiled on you on that day if you haven't died at all." 

Gunter just chuckled and smiles softly at the three of them. "Honestly I feel like I'm dreaming, surviving being attacked and falling so far..." He chuckles. "Though I have to admit...Hans was a disappointment. He barely left a scratch." He said, which then Polka blinked. "Ah, that reminds me: Hans actually said something strange on that day as well. He said that he followed King Garon's orders by attacking you." Once the princess said that, Gunter let out a sigh and shakes his head.

"This is embarrassing to admit, but... King Garon despises me." Polka blinks and looks at him in confusion. "Despises you? Why?" Gunter looks up at Polka, crossing his arms and looks down at the ground. "After being honored for valor in battle, I was granted with an audience with King Garon. *He looks back up at her* He offered me dragons blood; accepting would require absolute loyalty to the king." Sanora looked at him with wide eyes. "In other words, you would have become his retainer, the highest of positions. Correct?" She asks, and he nods his head.

"Indeed. However, it also would have meant leaving my homeland, my wife, my child. So I turned him down." He said, and looked down. "I wanted to live a normal life. I begged for his understanding. *he clenched one of his hands into a tight fist.* I will never forget is resentment...his rage." Polka looked at him with a sad expression. "I'm so sorry Gunter...I didn't know...." She said softly, looking at him with an apologetic expression on her face. 

Suddenly, before the conversation could continue, invisible solders appeared again, causing Polka and Azura to quickly turn around along with the other three. In the middle appeared to be a female mage, but the shadows surrounding it made it hard for them to see what she look liked. 

"Leave. Now. You should not be here." She said, her voice full of anger and warning. 

"W-What the- Who are you?!" Sanora asks in anger, bringing out her malice again. The others bringing out their own weapons as well. "I am a mage here in Valla... You were warned. Vallite warriors, eliminate them." She said, and more Vallite warriors appeared, causing Polka to scowl.

"This is bad... I don't think we're strong enough to defeat them. Let's retreat to the other world, quickly!" Azura said, and quickly she and the others hurried off. 

* * *

"Phew... It looks like we've made it back." Azura said. Polka nods her head in agreement and looked back down at the canyon. "Who was that women down there? She said that she was a mage..." Polka mumbled allowed to herself, causing Azura to go quiet and gave a blank expression on her face. She closed her eyes then said something that made Polka look at her in confusion. 

"When dawn turns to dusk. When dusk turns to dawn. Then the door will spawn." 

"Huh? Is that a poem Azura?" She asks her in curiosity. And once she did Azura opened her eyes again. "My mother... She said those words to me a long time ago. She said that when dawn turns to dusk, and dusk turns to dawn...* turns her head and looks back down into the bottomless canyon.* the pass to the bottomless canyon opens and closes." 

Polka and the girls look confused along with Gunter, who placed a hand on his chin and thinks for a moment on those words. "When the dawn turns...hmm... Oh, I get it." Polka and the girls look at him as he continues to speak the words. "Once every decades, the skies above Hoshido and Nohr will reverse. If I remember right, that should happen a few months from now." Azura nods her head, confirming Gunter's answer to be true. "Yes. I'm sure that's the sign that the pass down there has opened or closed. Since we're obviously able to travel there now, it will close the next time. Once it does, it will stay that way for decades. We won't be able to get there...*Azura's expression turns serious* We don't have that much time." 

Sanata and Sanora nodded their heads in agreement. "Then we're gonna need both kingdoms to stop fighting each other and help us." Polka said, looking at everyone. "If Marx and Ryoma were here right now, then there's no way we would lose." Polka said, causing Sanora looks at her in worry. "But how can we do that if we can't tell them the truth? If anything else we don't even know that they'll listen to you..." The purple colored hair girl said, causing Polka to bite her lower lip and cross her arms. 

Honestly, she wasn't sure how she was going to do that.

She did, after all, ran away from her families. Heck, she probably made them all think that she had abandoned them. 

But still...

Polka looks at everyone. "We'll just have to find another way, its the only choice we have if we don't want this world to be destroyed." She said, uncrossing her arms as she looks at everyone with a serious gaze. "Now that I know there is a common enemy for us to fight, I think we can save both Nohr and Hoshido." Polka said as a small smile appeared on her face.

"All I can do is believe in myself and try to convince others to join us." 

Azura looks at her with a surprised expression but then, a small gentle smile appears on her face. "Your right. I felt so powerless on my own, but together I know that we might be able to pull it off! Nothing will change if we stay here. Let's return to Hoshido first. I feel like they might be more willing to listen to us." She said, causing Polka to fight the urge to start shaking. 

She was going to head back to Hoshido...

Taking in a deep breath, she shakes her head, trying her best to fight off the panic she was starting to feel. 

'No, I have to do this. I need to believe in myself this time...I know I've always told myself that I wouldn't be able to do anything, but I know for a fact that the Yato chose me for a reason, and _all of this _is probably that reason. So I got to fight off my own fears and do my best not to make a single mistake...'

'If I do, I might have just gone down this path I've created for nothing.'


	3. Chapter 3

Polka and the others managed to get to Hoshido, they were also more closer to Fort Jinya as well. 

Azura had already noticed the tenseness Polka was feeling from a few feet away. She wanted to ask if she was alright, but she figured that if she did Polka would lie and just tell her that she was fine, even though it was clear as day that she wasn't alright at all. 

So in attempt to comfort her just a little, she held the younger girl's hand as they head over towards Fort Jinya. Whenever Polka was nervous, she would look back at the brunette and give her a reassuring smile, which instantly the girl could sense. She would glance back at Azura and nod her head, a small smile on her lips would appear on her face as they both look at each other for reassurance. 

Gunter soon stops and looks at Polka.

"Listen. Fort Jinya is just ahead, the fort is sure to be well defended by Hoshidan soldiers." 

Polka nods her head, taking in a deep breath she places a hand on her arm and squeezes it tightly and lets out a long sigh and nods. "Right. Let's go try and reach out to them." She said, making Gunter and Azura to look at her in concern. 

"M'lady, didn't you say that you ran away from both kingdoms? These soldiers have likely been ordered to kidnap you on sight." Gunter said, Azura nodding slightly in agreement.

"Also, you must not forget about the curse. You can't tell anyone what you've learned." The vallite princess added. Polka again nodded her head in understanding. "I know. Just the same, we have to try talking with them. *she said, looking at the both of them. with a serious expression on her face. "No one wants this war to continue forever. Surely some of them will listen." The Nohr princess looked at the fortress and takes in a deep breath before moving forward with Gunter and Azura. 

Once they made it to the fortress, Polka noticed that there wasn't anyone around, which caused her to worry. "This is the fortress....but why isn't there anyone around..." She mumbled, growing weary. 'Did Hoshidan forces abandoned it? No, they possibly couldn't have, right?' She questions to herself, biting her lower lip.

She then hears footsteps and quickly looks up and saw Yukimura come towards them.

"Yukimura..." Polka mumbled once she saw him. And instantly she saw a huge smile of relief appear on his face once he saw her. "Lady Polka! Thank the gods that you are alright! Ever since you ran away every solider in Hoshido has been looking all over for you. Though of course Ryoma made sure that some stayed behind so they could keep hold of the fort here." He said, making Polka look down. 

"I'm sorry that I caused you to worry, and as much as I want to apologize to my birth siblings I...I don't think that we'll have that much time to do so..." She said, looking at him with a slightly nervous expression, her eyes holding slight fear as she noticed Yukimura look at her in concern. 

"What do you mean? Are you...still not sure of who your real family is?" He asks, which caused Polka to suddenly flinch and wince at his words, making him hold back the urge to look surprise at how his words must have hit her. 

"I-I...w-well..." Polka felt herself shaking but felt Azura place a hand on her shoulder before looking towards Yukimura with a serious stoic expression on her face. "What Polka is trying to say is that she still isn't sure which side is her real family... After running off she and I had a talk... And the both of us have found out who truly is behind all of this. None of these incidents were not being caused by Nohr, a invisible enemy is behind all of this, they are the ones that are pulling the strings." Azura explained, causing Yukimura's eyes to narrow at her claim. "Is that so? Then who is it?" 

"..." Azura stayed silent, looking down slightly. "I...I'm afraid that I cannot say, and neither can Polka or the rest of us..." She said then looks back at Yukimura who closes his eyes and slowly shakes his head. 

"And here I thought that you truly would know that your real family was with Hoshido, Lady Polka..." The words caused Polka to suddenly raise her head and she clenched her fist tightly and she suddenly starts to shake. 

"T-That's..." Polka tried to speak, but the words she wanted to say wouldn't come out of her mouth, it was as if some force was keeping her from saying the words. 

_'That isn't true, of course I think Hoshido is my home, but I also think that my second home is Nohr as well...' _

That's what she wanted to say, but the words were completely swallowed into her throat as tears suddenly appeared in her eyes and she quickly moves her head down. She didn't want Yukimura to see her tears. 

"I suppose that I was mistaken...after all, you were raised in Nohr, and you no doubt would think about having to side with your "real" family wouldn't caused enough pain and suffering to us all...

So I guess that running away was just a _mistake _we made, wasn't it?"

_Mistake..._

_Mistake...?_

Polka suddenly felt anger boiling through her blood. It was chilly but yet surprisingly boiling hot as well. 

"No...." Polka suddenly whisper, causing Azura to look at her along with Gunter. Both of them held shocked expressions at how...emotionless Polka had sounded just now. Even Yukimura looked at her in shock. And suddenly, the mechanist felt a chill go down his back. 

"Lady Polka..." Gunter said in a stern tone, reaching out a hand towards her but then her eyes looked at Yukimura's that were now filled with tears which fell down her face. 

"RUNNING AWAY WASN'T A MISTAKE!!!" She shouts, causing everyone to back away in shock and fear as Polka starts to shake in sudden anger, but she also appeared to be shaking in fear as well. 

"YOU DON'T KNOW HOW _SCARED, _HOW _ANGRY _I WAS WHEN I FOUND OUT ABOUT WHAT HAD HAPPENED!! I WAS ANGRY THAT MY SIBLINGS FROM NOHR KNEW THAT I WAS TAKEN FROM HOSHIDO BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I WAS SCARED OF HAVING TO CHOICE A DAMN SIDE, ESPECALLY AFTER WHAT HAD HAPPENED WHEN I _KILLED __MY OWN MOTHER WHO I HAD FORGOTTEN AND RISKED HER OWN LIFE TO SAVE MY OWN!_" The girl lets out a broken sob and looked down at the ground and felt her form start to shake even more. 

"...Azura found me....just when I had thought about ending my _mistake of a life..._ A life that queen Mikoto had saved by sacrificing herself to save me... She whispers, slowly she looked up at Yukimura again who looked at her with regret and guilt. "... I didn't want to pick a side... I didn't want to betray both countries... I.. I didn't want to be some kind of stupid _pawn _in this _sick game!_" She spat out in so much anger and sadness as sobs wretched her as her shoulders shake. Her hands clenched into fist so hard that her knuckles turned white. 

Yukimura looked at her in sadness, regret was plainly showing in his eyes. "Lady Polka...I-I'm sorry...I-I didn't knew about any of this until now... please forgive me for making up assumptions..." He said, and bows in apologize as Polka looks at him carefully, as if trying to see if he was actually saying truth to his words. 

"You are seriously apologizing to this woman Yukimura?!" A voice said, and suddenly a man appeared. His hair was red and there was a scar on his left eye that was completely white. A mask adorned his mouth, and he appeared to be a ninja outfit. Polka somehow managed to hold herself back from flinching as she felt the ninja turn his head to look at her in complete and utter anger and rage. 

"This woman betrayed Hoshido! She ran away from her own birth family! Even if she did run then of course she probably did that so she could get off of our trail and end up actually meeting with the Nohrians before lady Azura found her!" He said, before Polka could say anything, she was surprised when she suddenly saw Sanora go past her and was now standing in front of her protectively. 

"If that were true, then how do you explain why I am here, along with my sister, Saizo?" Instantly Polka stared at Sanora in shock, just like Azura and Gunter. She then noticed that Saizo was also in surprise as well. 

"Sanora?! What are you doing here?!" He asks, causing the girl to narrow her eyes in slight anger. "I'm here because I'm helping a friend who I met when I was a child. Me and Sanata didn't knew that she was the princess of Hoshido, due to how far our village is between both countries. She and Azura came to our village and asked if they could stay..." She said and looks back at Polka with her brows slightly furrowed together. "When I saw her, I noticed that her eyes were red and blood shot from crying....and I could tell that she regretted having to run away from both Hoshido and Nohr..." As Sanora said this, she turned her head back to Saizo. "Not only that, but she has been through a lot of worse things in Nohr that her siblings don't even know about. She told us when we were young, her tutors tortured her for every single _mistake _she would make, and because of that she was probably scared of doing just that if she chose to pick either side..." Sanora's eyes were stone cold, making sure she stands in front of Polka, as if shielding her from Saizo's angry wrath that was showing in his eyes. 

"So Saizo, if she truly was a traitor, then how come no Nohrian soldiers came here when this entire area had no guards at all?" Sanora dared asks him, causing Saizo to go silent and look away. She then lets out a soft sigh and looks back at Polka, who finally managed to calm down and wipe away her tears. "Sanora...thank you.." Polka whispers to her, making the purple haired girl softly smile at her and gently pet her head. "Trust me, I don't do this just for my sister." She said then looks at Saizo and Yukimura. "So, now that all of this is cleared up, will you please finally let Polka and the rest of us explain what is truly going on?" She asks and sees Yukimora go silent before nodding, while Saizo looked away with a huff. 

Nodding at Sanora in thanks once again, she takes a step forward and gains a serious expression, despite her eyes now red from the tears that were shed.

"As Azura was saying, it is true. We may not be able to say who it is that's pulling the strings that's causing this war, but if you truly do want to know everything, then meet us at the Bottomless Canyon, once Hoshido and Nohr's skies change color." 

When Polka was done what she had said, Saizo huffed at her. "Sounds like some kind of hogwash." Sanora sent him a sharp glare at him, causing Saizo to glare back at her. 

"Its fine if you don't believe us, still, the offer for anyone else to join us still stands." Polka said, then turns around to look at the others. "Come on guys, we better get going..." She said, about to move out with the others. 

"W-Wait..!" A shy voice calls out, causing her to stop along with her group. Polka quickly turned her head and was shocked to see the younger sister of her birth family Sakura, rush up to her. Along with the ninja she had saved back in Nohr; Kaze. 

"S-Sakura?!" Polka stutters out in surprise and sees her quickly rush over and turns to look at Yukimura. "I-I heard everything! S-So... P-Please let me go with you! I may not be good at fighting, but I'm sure I can find a way to help!" She said, causing everyone to look at her in complete shock. 

"L-Lady Sakura, why are you-?!" Yukimura cuts himself off once Sakura turned to look at him and said. "I'm sorry. Yukimura. But I believe that Polka is telling the truth. We haven't spend much time together, but I can tell..." She pauses and turns to look at Polka and smiles gently at her. "I can tell by the look in her eyes... She isn't tricking us at all."

Polka honestly couldn't believe what she was hearing at all, Sakura actually believes her? Even after when she had ran away from her own birth family, she still believes in her...?

"Lady Sakura... *Yukimura was at a complete lost for words, not sure what to say at all.* I didn't expect this, I don't even know what to say right now...*the man then let's out a soft sigh* I've been by your side every since you were born, but I can tell that your mind has been made up." Yukimura smiles softly at the shy princess. "I won't try to stop you. Just...promise me that you'll be careful." Sakura smiles kindly at his words and nods her head with a gentle smile. "Th-Thank you, Yukimura." 

Soon, Kaze came up beside Sanora and looked at his brother Saizo. "Brother, I would like to ask for your understanding. I would like to accompany Lady Polka on her mission." Polka looks at Kaze in surprise then glances over at his brother. Sanora looks at Saizo and smiles a tiny bit when he hears him let out a soft sigh. "If you are set on that course, you may do as you wish." Kaze then looks at him with a serious expression. "I am." 

Polka suddenly breaks into a bright smile as Kaze and Sakura turn to look at her. "Thank you, Sakura, Kaze. Thank you so much for believing in me." The brunette said kindly to the both of them. Then her expression turns to its serious expression as she then turns around. "Let's head over to our next destination..." She said, and heads off with her team, leaving Fort Jinya behind. 

* * *

After leaving Fort Jinya, Polka and Sakura were walking side by side, but the chocolate colored brunette stops once she realized that they were walking past a lake that she recognized all too well.

"This lake..." Polka whispers, looking at it as memories came into her mind. 

The lake reminded her not only of the time she first met Azura, it also reminded Polka of the time after she ran from both her families and came to a lake this one, a lake where she nearly decided that would be where her own body would be layed to rest in. 

"Is something the matter?" She heard Sakura ask, making her blink out of her thoughts and looks at Sakura, who was looking at her in curiosity. Polka suddenly ended up smiling just a tiny bit at her then goes looking back at the lake. "This lake is where I first met Azura. *she giggles softly then looks down at the water, looking into her reflection.* So much has happened in the short time since then..." She whispers softly, bringing her arms around herself, as if trying to protect herself. 

"Polka..." She heard Sakura say her name in a gentle voice, making Polka look up and turn her head to face her with a sad expression on her face. "I'm sorry Sakura, there is so much I want to tell you, but I can't. Not here..." She said sadly, but saw Sakura gently smile at her. "Its alright Polka. I b-believe you. I can tell that your carrying a heavy burden..." She said gently and goes over and touches the brunette's hand gently, making Polka look at her and felt her place both hands over her right one and saw her look at her with a worried look on her face. 

"After when you ran away from us...things sort of gotten out of control in Hoshido... some of the people there were s-saying it was still y-your fault for M-Mother's death... B-But I knew t-that it c-couldn't be t-truth..." She said softly and looks down at Polka's hand. "E-Everyone w-was s-saying that you ran b-because y-you were t-too much of a c-coward to admit t-to what you have done...but they were wrong, not only that, but I could see that you were scared of choosing a side..." Polka froze and tensed up at Sakura's words. _She knew that she was scared of who to go to? _"Y-You m-must... love all of us a lot if you hadn't ran away from us... You didn't want to pick a side because you didn't want to be enemies with either side..." Tears filled up in Polka's eyes and slowly they fell as Sakura said her words carefully. "Not only that... But you were also scared because you didn't want Prince Marx or Ryoma to be mad at you, weren't you?" 

The words stung Polka as if it were a knife to the throat, she inhales deeply, and suddenly hugs Sakura tightly, causing the younger princess to gasp in shock and tense up but once she heard Polka softly crying, she gently hugs her back. It surprised the Hoshidan princess that she was able enough to place her chin over her older sister's shoulder, never the less she gently rubs her older sister's back in soothing circles as she felt her shoulder become wet due the tears her sister's were shedding. 

"I-I d-didn't w-want t-to h-hurt a-anyone o-of m-my f-family...I-I...I d-didn't kn-knew w-what to do...!" The girl cries in a whisper, her shoulders shaking slightly as she felt herself become loss in sadness. "I-I...I just...I-I w-was s-so s-scared...o-of j-just m-making o-one s-single m-mistake o-of m-making a s-side...b-because I e-eventually l-lead u-up i-into m-making s-so m-much o-of them..." She cries, slowly she pulls away but not completely as Sakura gently wipes away her sister's tears, her own eyes becoming watery, but the tears didn't fall. 

"Polka... If I can do even the smallest of things to h-help you get through all of this, t-then I..." She trails off, placing a hand over Polka's cheek, making sure she looks into her eyes. A soft gentle smile was formed on princess Sakura's face as she stares into Polka's gentle, soft, ruby red eyes that held so many emotions. Sadness, regret, guilt, and fear. Along with the many scattered, tiny pieces, of the poor princess's broken heart. 

"Th-Thank you, for letting me join you...I um, missed you." Sakura said in a gentle voice. "I hope I can help." She said, then moves her hand away and looks down before looking back up at Polka and smiles happily with a giggle. 

The sight couldn't help but make Polka giggle, in that moment, Sakura saw some of the tiny pieces of the princess's heart slowly, but surely, repair. But not much of it did. 

Suddenly, Polka turned her head, hearing the sound of a Pegasus coming towards the two. "Huh? Is that a Pegasus? *just as she said that, her eyes widen seeing one flying straight towards them* Wait, what the-? It is a Pegasus! And its coming straight towards us!" Sakura blinked at what she said and quickly turns her head and gasps once she saw the Pegasus. "What?! Ahh!" Sakura shrikes in surprise and quickly hurries over to Polka but stops once the Pegasus suddenly lands before them and a man with long red hair appeared, his hair in a perfect ponytail. He appeared to be a Pegasus knight, to Polka's realization once she noticed the outfit he was wearing. "*Whew*... We finally managed to catch up with you, milady!" The man said, making Sakura look at him in shock. "Waaah! S-Subaki?" She said the man's name, making Polka look at Sakura in confusion as a girl who wore Samurai clothes came off of Subaki's Pegasus. "Oh, Lady Sakura... Did you realize that you left us behind? How could you!" The girl asks her. "Hana! Why are the two of you-?" Sakura tried to ask them until Hana answered her question. "We heard from Yukimura. He told us that you left with Lady Polka." She said, making the shy princess let out a sigh.

"Ahh, of course Yukimura knew I needed you two..." She said softly, causing the samurai to giggle. "Even if Yukimura hadn't told us we would have searched day and night to figure out where you were and caught up!" Subaki nods his head in agreement with the samurai. "Indeed. It is our duty to protect you milady, and nothing will stop us." He said with a smile. "If you are headed somewhere, it is only natural that we would go too." He said, and bows before her, placing a hand over his chest. "We will always support you."

Sakura smiled at the two, she couldn't help but giggle at their words. "Thank you!" She said kindly. Polka looked back at her and tilts her head in confusion. "Uh.. Sakura, who are these people?" She asked, making Sakura turn to look at her with a gentle smile on her face. "Oh! Sorry, Polka. These two are my retainers; Subaki and Hana." She said, introducing the two to the chocolate brunette. "They're both really strong and kind; th-they protected me for years." She explained to her, a smile on her face as she tells her this. "They'll fight on our side. It'll be helpful to have such reliable friends." Polka smiles softly hearing this and giggles then looks back at the retainers. "

We need all the help we can get. Thank you, both of you." Polka said with a kind smile on her face. Subaki chuckles, swishing some of his hair behind his ear. "Of course. We'll carry out any mission flawlessly." He said, as Hana gains a serious expression. "To be honest, Lady Sakura will be my top priority, but I'll do my best to help!" She said, making Polka softly smile. 

Maybe creating this path wasn't going to be so regretful after all.

* * *

After taking a break in the Dusk twin's village, Polka was busy looking around the town again. Thinking that it would be alright if she had gotten some fresh air even if it was so late at night. 

As she walks deeper into the village, she noticed that there was no one around, making her let out a soft sigh as she then goes over and finds a spot to sit down and look up at the night sky which was full of stars. 

"...I wonder, are the rest of my siblings watching the stars right now?" She asks to no one in particular as she stares into the sky, a half crescent moon was present in the sky, making her let out a soft sigh. She then looks down at the ground as she then clenches her fists tightly. 

"...I can't make anymore mistakes...I've already made too much of them already...if I screw up now, my siblings could end up killing each other...and I don't want them to die because of someone pulling some strings..." She said quietly, clenching her fists tightly. She looks down at her left hand and slowly takes off the black glove that was covering it up to reveal permanent burned marks and tiny scars. 

She gotten this years ago, after when she had failed to protect Elise one time when they tried to defeat some Hoshidan worriers, the both of them just wanted to prove to their father that they were ready to go out on the battlefield. But in the end, they both ended up getting lost, and because of that Elise got really sick. King Garon blamed the incident on her, and just for that, he had a tutor give her a server punishment by making her dip her hand in fire, and had her train to the core while doing it.

She had a lot more hidden scars, but she never did showed anyone. If she did, she knew that her father would get mad at her for it. 

She didn't want her Nohrian siblings to worry about her. And neither did she want them to blame their-selves and make them think that they had failed her when she truly thought that she kept failing them with every single mistake she made. 

"Mistake..." She said the word again, she hated that word with every fiber of her being. She hated it when she made mistakes, because when she did, she would get punished for it, no matter how small it was. 

She takes in a deep breath and looks down, trying to fight the urge to not cry again. She didn't want to wake anyone up because of her being so vulnerable like this. 

"Um...miss?"

Polka's head went up and was surprised when she saw a young girl, standing a good seven feet away from her. She appeared to be either seven or eight. Her hair was a chocolate brown just like hers, and her eyes were shining like glass, and the color of them were the same colors as cherry red apple wine. She wore a red dress, full of dirt and rags. Her hair was short, but it wasn't too messy. She wore white socks but also wore brown shoes that appeared to be worn out. Her ears were also pointy, another addition to how they look the same. 

Polka was completely surprised and awe struck by the sight of the pretty young girl that she had forgotten that she was trying to talk to her, but that was only a second until reality came back after she had blinked. She cleared her throat before answering her with a gentle smile. 

"Hello little one, and who might you be?" She asks curiously, making the girl's cheeks flush a light shade of red. She shyly moved her head down and slowly moves her hand to her arm and rubs it slowly before looking back up at her before she finally had the courage to speak. "I-I'm R-Red..." She answers, making Polka tilt her head at her. _Red? What a strange name for a child...yet Polka felt like it suits her. _"U-Um...Are you okay? I-I noticed that you looked like you w-were about to cry a few moments ago, a-and I j-just wanted t-to see if t-there was s-something that I could d-do to help you..." She stuttered shyly, making Polka giggle at how cute she was. The brunette girl then gestures the girl to come closer to her with the wave of her hand, the child obeyed quickly. 

"I'm alright little one, I was...just remembering a lot of things that happened to me in the past." She said softly, looking back at the sky filled with beautiful sparkling stars. The young child, Red, came over and sat down next to the princess and looks at her sadly. "Are....were they bad things of the past that happened?" She asks, and gestures to her hand. "B-Because....y-your left hand..." She whispers, making inhale sharply and tense up. 

_She saw her hand...great._

Polka looks back at the young girl, then a tiny smile appears on her face. "Don't worry, I just...had this injury for a really long time. No one knows about it, well until now." She said and saw Red gain a guilty expression. "I'm sorry...I promise not to tell anyone." She said in a soft voice, carefully placing a hand over Polka's burnt one, causing the girl to flinch slightly but then relaxes at the child's touch. 

"Thank you, Red." Polka said in a soft voice and then gets back up. "Come on, we better bring you back to your parents, they must be worried sick." She said, but noticed the child look at her with a sad expression. "I...I don't have any family...I-I live i-in o-on m-my own w-with my f-friend K-Kana..." She said softly, making Polka look at her with a sad expression and gently kneels down to her level and places a hand on her shoulder. "How about this then, I can take care of you after me and my group finish our adventure." She said, making Red look at her in shock and surprise. "R-Really? B-But your the princess! A-And...y-you w-wouldn't w-want s-someone l-like m-me around..." She said in a sad voice, but hears Polka giggle slightly at her words. "I said the same thing to my older brother when I was adopted into the royal family in Nohr, I felt like I didn't deserve it, but in the end they all accepted me." She said, smiling a tiny bit and gently picks Red up carefully. Causing the young girl to let out an adorable "Meep!" in surprise as the princess picks her up and giggles. "If I was accepted in Nohr, along with being accepted in Hoshido, then I'm sure my siblings wouldn't mind having an adopted niece in the family." She said, a gentle smile was placed on her face. 

Red's eyes began to fill up with slight tears and instantly she buries her face in Polka's neck and she shakily lets out a quiet sob of relief.

_"Thank you...M-Mama..."_


End file.
